Crib Notes

Jewish rapper Matisyahu will play a free 3 o’clock in-store performance at the new Criminal Records in Little 5 Points today.

(Photo courtesy of Matiyahu)

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Another reason to lust after the iPhone: new FourTrack recorder app

Spotted at Wired:

Legend has it that Michael Jackson devised the ridiculously catchy bassline for “Billie Jean” while sitting in a tree. Maybe, if he’d had this, he could have written the whole song up there.

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For today’s installment of roll call we call out Lenny’s promoter and video artist Bean Summer.

Who are you?
I am human video unit 34796864923 — eight. Also known as Bean, though this is only my alter ego. My real ego died years ago. I’m an artist, musician, noisemaker, video jockey, replicant, android, teacher, instructor, humanoid, hobo, carny, promoter, sound engineer, visual stimulator, and parental discretion is advised.

Describe yourself in three words.
Unique, compelling, fun.

Who — dead or alive — would most you like to meet?
Nam June Paik, was probably the first video artist in the world, he experimented with televisions and created many video works and was part of the Fluxus art movement. He is probably one of my biggest influences. It would be interesting to sit down and talk with him about what he would be doing now with all the technology that we have available to us as video artists. He pioneered everything I do as a video artist.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
Myself. I make big mistakes. I’m sure that many people agree that slapping me in the face would probably be a good idea.

What song do you wish you had written?
“Ring of Fire” by June Carter Cash.

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
If I had to pick one I would say Presley, though I love Elvis Costello as well. In all honesty it’s a tie.

LP, CD or MP3?
.mov files or QuickTime files… A little video nerd joke.

If you could start one trend, what would it be?
Bands arriving on time.

If you could end one trend, what would it be?
Police enforcement of some laws that I will not say here.

With whom would you most like to play a game of spin the bottle?
My girlfriend, Ms. Elisabeth Amanda (Mandy) Gee.

Bean is most excited to tell you that The King Khan and BBQ comes to Lenny’s on Fri., Nov. 21. Tickets are $10 in advance / $15 day of show.

(Photo by Chad Radford)

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Each week the folks at HaveyouHeard.net set the stage for a band to play a free show at Cabbagetown hipster spot, 97 Estoria. After these show the band sticks around to spin records and keep the party going as long as the law will allow. This week local freak rock duo Nomen Novum holds it down, with an opening set from Baltimore’s Future Islands.

Music starts at 9 p.m.

For those who are unfamiliar, Nomen Novum is one of the more recent weirdo psych/art rock acts to come together in Atlanta. Their debut “Mantis Man,” “Aunt Urn” b/w “Vinyl” 7-inch was released a few months back on Operation Get Jacked! The green-vinyl offering features three of the coolest and catchiest, rounds of acid-drenched acoustic minimalism and strummed punk anthems I’ve heard in a while. The record didn’t come with any kind of formal press materials, but it did come with a post-it note that says, “not garage punk,” which says an awful lot about their spirit.

“Aunt Urn” MP3

Have You Heard Session: Nomen Novum from HaveYouHeard on Vimeo.

(Photo by Joseph Velazquez)

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Today’s Air Loaf features CL’s Chanté LaGon and Chad Radford chatting about Of Montreal and the new album from the Athens band, Skeletal Lamping.

Air Loaf is broadcast weekdays on 1690 WMLB-AM at approximately 8:10 a.m., 12:20 p.m. and 6:20 p.m.

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(Album cover image courtesy Polyvinyl Records)

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Remembering JAX, a benefit show in memory of Jax of Binkis Recs, is scheduled for Saturday, November 8 to raise funds for his family. $10 donation. 3-6 p.m. Lenny’s, 486 Decatur St. 678-760-9152.

Performers will include Clan Destined, Eddie Meeks, Senor Kaos, Ekundayo, Stahhr tha F.E.M.C.E.E., Great Scott, Mojo Swagger, Dropbombz, Melaphyre, Marq Spekt, Transistor Fist, Ozy, Jaws of Life, and Ness Lee. DJs: Mafioso, Fudge, Synthesis, and Rock Most.

Though the door price is $10, concert-goers are encouraged to contribute more. In addition, Jax’s wife, Lisa, will also be accepting contributions via her PayPal account, according to the show flier. To access, enter her email address, ejwatts77@yahoo.com.

Check out the Binkis Recs blog for classic footage of Jax breaking down his lyrics, performing, and featuring in videos.

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Wolfie, Jeano, McNasty, Handsome Jimmy, Boomer…

Sounds like I’m listing off names for the next WWE wrestling event, doesn’t it? These names belong to a group of guys nestled in the little town just north of us called Nashville, Tenn. They’re called the Creeping Cruds, and no other name could fit these fellas any better. The horror-themed rock ‘n’ roll band has just put out their second album titled Tennessee Bloodbath.

Don’t listen to this album thinking you know what to expect, because you don’t. It’s not psychobilly by any means, and it’s not as hard as other horror-themed bands, such as Calabrese or even the Misfits. It’s straight-up, dirty rock ‘n’ roll with a pinch of the Wolfman, a twist of Dracula, and a heaping spoonful of Frankenstein’s Monster.

“I Kicked Dracula’s Ass” is a great fist-pumping anthem as Wolfie tells the tale of how Frankenstein’s Monster did the “monster mash” all over Drac after the un-dead bastard stole Frankie’s bride. “Meat & Three” is about finding out your girlfriend has been turned into the daily special at the local greasy spoon — a fun first date song. Any fan of the Charlton Heston thriller I Am Omega should get the title, “Come Out Neville.” It’s based on the Richard Matheson short horror novel “I Am Legend” that Will Smith turned into a big budget blockbuster last year — but Heston, and even Vincent Price, took it to the big screen before Bill Willy got his Scientology-laden hands all over it.

The album consists of 12 listed tracks with a hidden 13th titled “Down in the Graveyards,” which sounds like Buck Owens blended with Boris Karloff. It’s an excellent companion piece to the Creeping Cruds first release, The Incredibly Strange People Who Stopped Living And Became… All-in-all, it’s good clean family entertainment — if your last name happens to be Munster.

One of the things I really enjoy about this album, and the band, is they don’t take themselves too seriously. Many bands today think they have to be uber-serious about their craft and not bring any humor to the table, but the Cruds serve it up and they’re not shy about giving you a second helping. Take advantage of having a band of this caliber so close to Atlanta and check out their tunes online.

They frequent Atlanta and are a hop, skip, and a jump away in their hometown of Nashville. Their album can be purchased via their MySpace page.

(Photo courtesy Erin Owens)

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Today Spin.com features Gringo Star as their artist of the day.

(Photo by Jeoff Davis)

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Funeral services are being held today for Atlanta blues icon Cora Mae Bryant who died on Thursday, October 30th. Bryant, who pssed away from natural causes, was the daughter of Georgia guitar legend Curley Weaver. She was born in Newton County, Georgia on may 1rst, 1926 and her home in Oxford, GA is thought of as a blues museum.

Her sound was largely influenced from her childhood experiences of staying up late at night with her father and singing along during the impromptu performances and house parties he would play with his cohorts Blind Willie McTell, Buddy Moss and the likes.

She recorded two CDs for the Music Maker label, titled Born with the Blues and Born in Newton County, and will be featured in the forthcoming film, Blues Stories.

Cora Mae Bryant’s “No-No Blues” MP3

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Starting tomorrow night, Derek Lyn Plastic begins a month-long residency at The Star Bar in Little 5 Points.

For the first installment (Wed., Nov. 5), DLP headlines a set with Ominous Castle and Trial By Fire.

Next Wed., Nov. 12th, he will be joined by the N.E.C. and Abby Go Go.

On Wed., Nov. 19th Hollow Stars and the Sunglasses open the show.

And finally on Wed., Nov. 26th DLP plays the middle slot between Das Manics and opening act Vera Fang.

All shows are $3, 21+ and start at 9 p.m. for more information look online at www.starbar.net

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Jax of Atlanta’s legendary indie hip-hop crew Binkis Recs suffered a heart attack while onstage at Lenny’s last night and was pronounced dead after being rushed to the hospital.

According to close friend and Binkis crew member Flux da Wondabat, Jax was performing the title track from his 2007 solo album, Sharper Images.

“He was performing onstage and he just passed out in the middle of his verse,” said Flux. “We went to the emergency room and then they came out and gave us the word.”

Formed in 1997, the Binkis Recs trio (Jax, Flux, Killa Kalm) quickly established itself as a true alternative to the commercial, crunk sound that defined Atlanta near the end of the millennium.

“Atlanta is weird because it’s two scenes,” N.Y. native Jax told CL in 2005. “It’s the natives and the transplants. And the scene that most people know — the OutKast and Ludacris — are all from here. A lot of us on the underground level are from somewhere else.”

The group’s name still speaks volumes — the acronym BINKIS stands for “Before Ignorant Niggas Killed Intelligent Songs.” They released several CDs, including 2003’s The Reign Begins. Though most failed to register commercially, their impact among Atlanta’s independent hip-hop scene is still felt.

“Binkis Recs paved the way for what a lot of younger Atlanta hip-hop musicians are able to do right now,” says former ATF Records label mate and friend, J-Mil of Collective Efforts. “A lot of people don’t even know that DJ Drama got his start with these brothers.”

While he was reminiscent of rap’s golden era, Jax believed in pushing music forward, as evidenced by these lyrics from the song “Shift,” featured on his ’07 release: “‘88 is not coming back/Nobody can replace Rakim or G. Rap/Slick Rick or Kane/’94’s gone/You can’t imitate Nas, Biggie or the Wu-Tang/It’s just not the same/What you should do is take lessons from the eras passed/The eras made/And apply it to your own era/Leave a legacy using your own lyrical weaponry.”

Jax had recently purchased a home with his fiancé, whom he planned to marry before year’s end.

“A lot of people forget what kind of sacrifices independent artists make in an attempt to give people options in music. Jax gave his life to the culture, and that’s a hard thing to do,” says J-Mil. “While I want to celebrate his life, I can’t help but miss the brother. I know I’m not alone.”

As for Flux and the Binkis Recs crew, “personally, he meant everything. He embodies what Binkis is; he was Binkis,” says Flux. “As far as hip-hop is concerned, that’s what Binkis is and what hip-hop is. We just continued on with the creativity and enjoyed doing it and having fun.”

Click here to see more photos of Jax.
Click here to visit Jax’s MySpace page.
Click here to listen to music from Jax.

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Hot on the heels of a September/October North American tour stint opening up for Stereolab, Atlas Sound (a.k.a. Bradford Cox of Deerhunter) has perpetrated a cool and crystalline remix of “Neonbeanbag” from Stereolab’s latest full-length Chemical Chords.

The so-called “Southern Baptist Remix” isn’t a huge departure from the song’s original version. The tweaks and vibrant textures that Cox adds to the song are used more to flesh out the parts of the song that already exists, rather than turn it into something new.

To listen to Atlas Sound’s remix of Stereolab’s “Neon Beanbag” click here.

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